Shirley Anne Langrope (born 15 November 1945) is a former New Zealand netball international. Between 1969 and 1975, she made 19 senior appearances for

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...

. She was a member of the New Zealand team that won a silver medal at the

1971 World Netball Championships The 1971 World Netball Championships was the third edition of the INF Netball World Cup, a quadrennial premier event in international netball. It was held in Kingston, Jamaica, and featured nine teams including the debut of the Bahamas. It began on ...

and captained New Zealand when they won a bronze medal at the

1975 World Netball Championships The 1975 World Netball Championships was the fourth edition of the INF Netball World Cup, a quadrennial premier event in international netball. It took place from 22 August to 4 September and was held in Auckland, New Zealand. It featured 11 teams ...

. Four of her cousins – Maxine Blomquist, Annette Heffernan, Kate Heffernan and

Georgia Heffernan Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to th ...

– have all played international netball for New Zealand.

Early life and family

Langrope is originally from

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour. The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of ...

. Four of her cousins – Maxine Blomquist, Annette Heffernan, Kate Heffernan and

– have all played international netball for New Zealand.

Netball career

New Zealand

Between 1969 and 1975, Langrope made 19 senior appearances for

. On 20 June 1969 she made her senior debut for New Zealand against Australia. She was selected as a replacement for

Judy Blair Judy Blair (born December 29, 1948) is an American musician, singer, piano and Hammond B3 organ player, a composer of jazz, blues, rhythm & blues and boogie music. She is a Hammond organ virtuoso whose musical career began in the United States i ...

after she dropped out to attend her brother's wedding. She was subsequently a member of the New Zealand team that won a silver medal at the

. In 1974 she captained New Zealand for an away series against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

. Her team mates for the series included her cousin, Maxine Blomquist. She again captained New Zealand when they won a bronze medal at the

. However, she was injured during the tournament and had to watch the final matches from the sidelines. In June 2000, at a celebration of

Netball New Zealand Netball New Zealand is the national body which oversees, promotes and manages netball in New Zealand, including the Silver Ferns. In 2019, 137,713 players were registered with Netball New Zealand, the governing body for organised netball in the ...

's 75th anniversary, Langrope was named as a reserve in a New Zealand "dream team".

Schoolteacher

Langrope became a schoolteacher and lived in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

. In 1992, she moved back to

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

to teach at South New Brighton School. In 2021, she was still listed as a staff member.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Langrope, Shirley 1945 births Living people New Zealand netball players New Zealand international netball players 1971 World Netball Championships players 1975 World Netball Championships players New Zealand schoolteachers Heffernan family Sportspeople from Canterbury, New Zealand